Results 24,201-24,220 of 32,583 for speaker:Richard Bruton

Multinational Investment (26 Apr 2012)

Richard Bruton: The Deputy is raising issues that go well beyond the subject of his question. The Government is acutely aware of the problems in the banking system. The Minister of State, Deputy Perry, has been engaged in a roadshow with the Secretary General of the Department of Finance, Mr. John Moran. Deputy Wallace is aware the Department of Finance has received a commitment from each of the two...

Manufacturing Sector (26 Apr 2012)

Richard Bruton: Ireland has built a strong reputation for quality and efficiency in a range of areas of the manufacturing sector, which employs more than 158,000 people in direct full-time jobs and the same number again in indirect employment. This sector is a key part of our economic recovery, growth and job creation strategies. Manufacturing in Ireland spans a wide range of sectors. We have particular...

Manufacturing Sector (26 Apr 2012)

Richard Bruton: A number of immediate actions are being taken. We have commissioned a report from Forfás on the manufacturing sector which will focus specifically on the issues that have been raised by the Deputy, including future skills deficits, research and development needs and the adequacy of our technological support. When we prioritised research expenditure, we identified the segments of high value...

Manufacturing Sector (26 Apr 2012)

Richard Bruton: The Deputy is not correct. There are always elements of sectors that rise and fall. If the Deputy is pronouncing the end of ICT as a driver of change in our economy, I could not agree with him. The IT sector is here to stay and there are huge opportunities therein. There are massive skills shortages and job opportunities that could be availed of. The IT sector is one in which Ireland has...

Manufacturing Sector (26 Apr 2012)

Richard Bruton: Absolutely. Manufacturing comprises a sector. All the sectors have a mix of indigenous and foreign-owned companies, which is very often their strength. The medical devices sector comprises a perfect example. We have some wonderful international manufacturing companies but, equally, we have built a seedbed with NUIG around Galway that is developing many young indigenous companies at the...

Job Creation (26 Apr 2012)

Richard Bruton: I propose to take Questions Nos. 8 and 19 together. The Taoiseach, Tánaiste and I were able to report last Friday, in the first quarterly progress report on the implementation of the action plan for jobs, that 96%, or 80 out of 83 measures which were scheduled to be completed in quarter 1, were delivered. I regard this as a significant achievement for the Government and an indication of its...

Job Creation (26 Apr 2012)

Richard Bruton: We are not seeking to be judges in our own cause but to be open and accountable. We are saying what we plan to deliver and we are publishing this information on a quarterly basis. The Deputy has access to the same amount of data as I do.

Job Creation (26 Apr 2012)

Richard Bruton: We are seeking to mobilise the public service across government. Fifteen Departments and 36 agencies have contributed. Not only have they said they would take action but they are willing to put their names up in lights and state they will be held to account for what they are doing. This is new for the public service. In the numerous strategies published in the past, including the health...

Job Creation (26 Apr 2012)

Richard Bruton: The Deputy is free to look at it. The implementation of a particular initiative has stages. With regard to the partial loan guarantee, one publishes a Bill on a certain date and has it passed on a certain date. We are willing to commit to the publication date of the Bill and we commit to delivering by quarters. The Deputy, who has been around this House for nearly as long as I have, will...

Job Creation (26 Apr 2012)

Richard Bruton: When we came into office there was no microfinance fund. It was drawn down for the First Step programme.

Job Creation (26 Apr 2012)

Richard Bruton: The State cannot draw that down. It must set up an independent arm to draw it down which is the microfinance proposal we are developing. In the action plan for jobs we have committed for a date for it going live. We have also made a commitment on when the heads of the Bill and the subsequent legislation will be published. The Government is fronting up and stating these are target dates...

Job Creation (26 Apr 2012)

Richard Bruton: The Taoiseach is at the centre of this. He chairs the Cabinet sub-committee and has a unit in his Department that monitors progress. If the Taoiseach asks a Minister or a senior official why they have not delivered on a programme or target to which they are committed, they tend to respond. They say biting with the president's teeth. The most effective accountability, as we have seen in...

Industrial Relations (26 Apr 2012)

Richard Bruton: Recommendations and awards of these institutions may concern either industrial relations or employment rights issues. I will deal with each separately. The system of industrial relations in Ireland is essentially voluntarist in nature. The State provides a framework and the institutions through which good industrial relations can prosper. It is expected that the parties to a dispute come...

Industrial Relations (26 Apr 2012)

Richard Bruton: I agree there have been difficulties with the resolution of many industrial disputes. However, legal mandatory rulings have not been a feature of our industrial relations scenery and they create a very different approach to industrial relations. Our industrial relations machinery has evolved on the basis of seeking to be conciliatory and to bring parties together. Ultimately solutions have...

Industrial Relations (26 Apr 2012)

Richard Bruton: Our ambition is to have a system that is efficient, with early intervention to reconcile the issues rather than as in the present system where often it becomes very legalistic and moves towards adjudication and hearings rather than seeking an early intervention. We need a system that works effectively for both sides. That is my ambition and we seek to develop mechanisms to achieve this.

Upward-only Rent Reviews (26 Apr 2012)

Richard Bruton: Section 132 of the Land and Conveyancing Law Reform Act 2009, which provides for the abolition of upward-only rent reviews in commercial leases, became operative on 28 February 2010. The two enterprise agencies which report to my Department and have significant property portfolios, namely IDA Ireland and Shannon Development, have acted in accordance with the provisions of section 132 of the...

Upward-only Rent Reviews (26 Apr 2012)

Richard Bruton: It is my understanding that there has been no increase in rents by those agencies. However, I will seek further clarification and confirmation for the Deputy. He raises the wider issue of the Government's intention to seek to do away with upward-only rents. This matter is the responsibility of the Department of Justice and Equality but the advice of the Attorney General is that it was not...

Upward-only Rent Reviews (26 Apr 2012)

Richard Bruton: I am not in a position to guarantee in respect of any reduction in upward-only rents. It is not possible for the Government to introduce a provision requiring landlords to reduce their rents to market levels. The legal advice is that it is not possible.

Written Answers — Departmental Expenditure: Departmental Expenditure (25 Apr 2012)

Richard Bruton: My Department did not spend any money on hair and make-up since February 2011.

Written Answers — Ministerial Transport: Ministerial Transport (25 Apr 2012)

Richard Bruton: The total cost to this Department of ministerial transport for the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, the Minister for Small Business and the Minister for Research and Innovation from 9 March 2011 to 20 April 2012 was €322,377.60. This sum included the following principal costs – the salary costs of the Ministers' civilian drivers, including employer's PRSI contribution,...